The Informationist
Authors: Deborah B. Root Jorgensen
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2001)

Letters6 February 2001The InformationistDeborah B. Root Jorgensen, PharmD CandidateDeborah B. Root Jorgensen, PharmD CandidateVirginia Commonwealth University/MCV School of Pharmacy; Richmond, VA 23298-0581 (Root Jorgensen, Candidate)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-134-3-200102060-00022 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:The recent editorial by Davidoff and Florance (1) raised many important issues about medical information. I beg to differ, however, with their conclusion that a new health profession, the “informationist,” is the “obvious answer” to the problem of information retrieval. We already have, as part of the health care team, pharmacists who specialize in the provision of just such information. In fact, pharmacists are uniquely qualified as drug and medical information specialists, thanks in part to the ever-expanding clinical curricula at pharmacy programs throughout the United States. Combined with training in retrieval and evaluation of biomedical literature, ...References1. Davidoff F, Florance V. The informationist: a new health profession? [Editorial]. Ann Intern Med. 2000;132:996-8. LinkGoogle Scholar2. Redman RL, Mays DA. Drug information services in the managed care setting. Drug Benefit Trends. 1997;Aug:28-40. Google Scholar3. Gums JG, Yancey RW, Hamilton CA, Kubilis PS. A randomized, prospective study measuring outcomes after antibiotic therapy intervention by a multidisciplinary consult team. Pharmacotherapy. 1999;19:1369-77. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Leape LL, Cullen DJ, Clapp MD, Burdick E, Demonaco HJ, Erickson JI, et al . Pharmacist participation on physician rounds and adverse drug events in the intensive care unit. JAMA. 1999;282:267-70. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Bond CA, Raehl CL, Franke T. Clinical pharmacy services and hospital mortality rates. Pharmacotherapy. 1999;19:556-64. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Virginia Commonwealth University/MCV School of Pharmacy; Richmond, VA 23298-0581 (Root Jorgensen, Candidate) PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoThe Informationist: A New Health Profession? Frank Davidoff and Valerie Florance The Informationist Stephen Sandroni The Informationist Bruce Houghton and Eugene C. Rich The Informationist Michael J. Schott The Informationist Frank Davidoff and Valerie Florance Metrics Cited byHospital clinicians’ information behaviour and attitudes towards the ‘Clinical Informationist’: an Irish surveyThe Clinical Librarian/InformationistWorking towards the informationistFellowship Training at Johns Hopkins 6 February 2001Volume 134, Issue 3Page: 251KeywordsAdverse reactionsDeath ratesDrug informationDrugsHealth careHealth information technologyInformation retrievalPharmacists ePublished: 6 February 2001 Issue Published: 6 February 2001 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2001 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...